Thursday, March 27, 2008

Erin loves food. She also hates food. She alternates between scarfing down everything on her tray, and flinging food over the side onto the floor.

I'm sure that's normal. Every baby probably has the same kind of love-hate relationship with their comestibles.

But how can you tell if your baby has an eating disorder?

Erin loves playing with her mirror, and at 11 months old she may understand that it is a reflection of herself that she is seeing (I haven't tried the smudge-on-face test yet, so I can't be sure). But I worry that she is trying to improve the way she looks so she can snag some coveted baby modeling gig.

You see, my daughter might be bulimic.

After nearly every meal she sticks at least one finger down her throat until she gags. Then she looks up at me and laughs, and her eyes say "This will make me prettier, dad."

I think it's my fault. I told her last week that she has chunky thighs.

Hey kid. You will always be the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. Now eat your cheese and carrot ravioli.

12 comments:

BabyShrink
said...

She's trying to get a reaction out of you, Dad! And she is! ;) She's also discovering all the wild, wacky and wonderful things her body can do. (just wait!)I have a toddler who actually pukes on command, just to get me mad (and I do, duh.).

So: ignore, ignore, ignore. And then ignore some more, every time she does it. Just act like she didn't do it. Ask her pedi if you want to be sure, (but not when she's listening! Then she'll know she's gotcha!)but it sounds like she's just doing it for effect.

I agree with the other comments; it's a combination of:a) exploration (as in "hey, I wonder what happens if I try and swallow this finger?") andb) experimentation (as in "hey, can I get Dad to make that same face this time?")

My daughter used to cry so hard she would make herself literally blow chunks... not gag; CHUNKS. Toddler puke is easily the most vile smelling shit known to man (and I've lived in a university residence).

Glad my baby isn't the only one going through the "will eat won't eat" thing. Although he'll always scoff down his Wheatabix in the morning. But no self-esteem issues in this house. Ask Matthew if he's a beautiful boy and he gives you a Look and says, 'Gorgeous.' And smiles.

Julia did this when she was about two years old. It was a phase that lasted for a while and at the time, I was either ready to pop with Oliver or had just delivered him, and Dave and I chalked it up to her trying to get a reaction out of us. We did our best to ignore it, as unnerving as it was (it *really* bothered me).

I agree with I'm a Different Kind of Girl, if you want to model you have to look good! There are no chunky baby thighs on the runway this year. I do have a contact at America's Next Top Baby Model. Would you like me to see if they're interested in having her come in for a look see?